the expert then starts huffing and puffing "but akshually you see all models are wrong but some are useful." yeah right, useful as a way for you to get invited to conferences and advance your career, no doubt, but not much more than that.
-
Show this thread
-
Replying to @LoCtrl
Anyone who utters that sentence should be slapped in the face.
1 reply 0 retweets 2 likes -
Why? The sentence gives a simple way to attack the model: just argue that it isn't useful. I might even say that this sentence captures one of the most important insights in science.
2 replies 0 retweets 4 likes -
Replying to @Scientific_Bird @LoCtrl
I don't see what's deep about that sentence, it's a platitude that, in 99% of the cases, is uttered by people in response to a devastating criticism of a model, as a way to avoid addressing the criticism. Typically, people will point out why the model rests on totally implausible
1 reply 1 retweet 3 likes -
assumptions, and then defenders of the model will utter this sentence as a way of suggesting the model still makes useful predictions but without having to prove it, even though after someone has convincingly argued that your model's assumptions were very bad in a way that
2 replies 0 retweets 1 like -
I didn't say the sentence was deep. I am just referring to the philosophy that it quickly summarizes. I think the "All models are wrong, but some are useful" philosophy is what guards you against complete scientific relativism and lets you retain some form of scientific realism.
1 reply 1 retweet 4 likes -
Replying to @Scientific_Bird @LoCtrl
But this sentence is actually predicated on an instrumentalist philosophy of science that rejects scientific realism!
1 reply 1 retweet 3 likes -
I don't want to get into a huge discussion, but I'll just very briefly describe my philosophy of science. There exist actual truths. We can approximate those truths with models that aren't exactly true, but they are useful descriptors of reality.
1 reply 0 retweets 9 likes -
Replying to @Scientific_Bird @LoCtrl
That's fine, my criticism wasn't really of the phrase itself, but of the way in which it's being used. It's used as a cope out to not have to respond to legitimate criticisms of a model by actually showing that it's useful instead of just uttering a platitude.
1 reply 0 retweets 5 likes -
Again it usually goes like this: A: "Here is my model" B: *devastating criticism of the assumptions of model* A: "Well, all models are wrong, but some models are useful" But that's not what A is supposed to do at this point, he's supposed to show the model is actually useful!
1 reply 1 retweet 8 likes
Neither of you are wrong; the problem is that science can't survive a low trust environment that doesn't value actual truth which is what our multicultural society with a new state religion (that doesn't value truth) now is The response is a dodge if the responder is a careerist
Loading seems to be taking a while.
Twitter may be over capacity or experiencing a momentary hiccup. Try again or visit Twitter Status for more information.